Trinity Bell, who signed with Tennessee during 2021’s early signing period in December, suffered a right knee injury two weeks ago while playing in a high school basketball game.
The Volunteer signee confirmed to Volquest it’s a torn anterior cruciate ligament and that he underwent surgery Thursday to repair the problem.
The Albertville, Ala. native was already in therapy come Friday afternoon.
“I was going up for a rebound and just landed completely wrong,” Bell remembered. “Ever since the injury, it’s never really hurt. When the doctor told me it was torn, I was kind of shocked.”
Initially, the tight end feared the worst.
“When I was laying there on the ground, all I could think about was, ‘Yep. I’m not going to Tennessee anymore,” Bell said. “It felt like my leg was broken in half. Obviously, there’s some relief now knowing it was just an ACL.”
The timeline for recovery is estimated for around 6-to-8 months.